Battery operated devices having a graphical display are increasingly popular. Cell phones, MP3 players, global positioning satellite (GPS) receivers, personal data assistants, and hand-held video games, are a few examples of such devices incorporating a graphical display made up of a two-dimensional matrix of pixels.
As more such devices enter the market, it is increasingly important to provide increased capability and functionality to provide distinguishing characteristics. Unfortunately, many functional improvements require increased computer processing, which adversely affects power consumption and battery life. It would therefore be desirable to provide enhanced functionality without significantly impacting battery performance.
Screen savers are known to be popular among consumers of battery operated devices incorporating a graphical screen. Although, in the context of a liquid crystal display (LCD), screen savers may not actually prevent harm to the display screen, they do provide eye-catching animations. In the context of other displays, however, such as cathode ray tube (CRT) and plasma screens, screen savers can truly prevent image burn-in by changing the displayed image from a static image to a dynamic one.
Unfortunately, while screen savers are known for use with cell phones and other devices, they require significant processing time and therefore adversely affect battery life. It would therefore be desirable to provide a capability for an eye-catching dynamic screen saver display without utilizing significant processor time.